Spooktacular Halloween cookies!

It’s the season of ghosts and goblins and time to bake some spooktacular cookies! From sugar cookie scaredy cats to ghostly meringues, here are three Halloween cookie recipes perfect for fright night.

Sugar cookie scaredy cats

Makes two dozen cookies

All you need is a cat-shaped cookie cutter to whip up these feline-inspired cookies. They also work great with other Halloween shapes including pumpkin, ghost, and moon cutouts.

Ingredients:

For the cookies:

1 cup sugar

2/3 cup softened butter

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon milk

For the icing:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Cream butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla until combined.

Add flour, baking powder, salt, and milk. Beat with a mixer until smooth.

Chill dough in the refrigerator for two hours.

Roll out dough until it’s very thin (about 1/8-inch thick). Cut out shapes and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. If the dough gets sticky, add flour to the cutting surface and/or dip the cookie cutter into the flour before cutting out each shape.

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, beating well after each addition. Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop by the teaspoon on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees F for 10 minutes or until the edges are slightly browned.

Ghostly meringue cookies

Makes one dozen cookies

For a light and delicate Halloween cookie, nothing tops these ghostly meringues. With just four ingredients, they’re a cinch to whip up. Create ghostly shapes using your favorite Halloween cookie cutters.

Ingredients:

4 large egg whites at room temperate

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Beat egg whites until foamy.

Add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form.

Gradually add sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

Stir in vanilla.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and use a ghost-shaped cookie cutter to draw shapes. Use a pastry bag to fill the shapes with the meringue.

Bake at 250 degrees F for 60 to 90 minutes (rotate cookie sheets from top to bottom halfway through the cooking time). The meringues are done when they release from the parchment paper. Turn off the oven, leave the door ajar and let the meringues rest in the oven for another 30 minutes.